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Bo Xilai on trial for bribery, embezzlement and abuse of power

Bo Xilai burst onto the Chinese political scene, attracted a loyal following and proposed his own model for Chinese development. He seemed destined for high office. Yet at the end of last year's National People's Congress he was taken away to be held in a secret location and today he will face trial, accused of bribery, embezzlement and abuse of power.

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TONY EASTLEY: Bo Xilai burst onto the Chinese political scene, attracted a loyal following, and proposed his own model for Chinese development and he seemed destined for high office.

Yet at the end of last year's National People's Congress he was taken away to be held in a secret location and today he will face trial.

He's accused of bribery, embezzlement and abuse of power.

China correspondent Stephen McDonell is in Jinan for the trial.

Stephen, are we likely to see very much of this trial given the secrecy that normally surrounds Chinese law?

STEPHEN MCDONELL: Well, they are actually predicting some or all of this trial might be broadcast on television. Now if that was the case it will be quite extraordinary. I can't imagine that they would, without a delay, be putting the whole thing on television, but even to see some of it would be quite remarkable.

TONY EASTLEY: How much do we know about what he's thought to have done?

STEPHEN MCDONELL: Really, there's only been a few bits and pieces of what he's said to have done, just the most vaguest outlook that's been announced. And so what we'll find out today is what he's supposed to have done and the extent to which he admits that he's done it.

And in particular we'll find out to what extent this has anything at all to do with his wife's case. And she's already been found to have murdered a British businessman and now has he been involved with this murder, has he tried to cover up this murder, does that have anything to do with his case.

TONY EASTLEY: Is this more about ideology and factional loyalties rather than actual crimes?

STEPHEN MCDONELL: Most observers would say what he has supposedly done is not unique in China. And so a lot of people in China are asking: Why him? Why is he facing these charges? And so the answer has to be that it is all to do with politics.

And this is the end of a big struggle within the Communist Party. He really put the frighteners through people with his ideology, with his neo-Maoist ideas. And he was just rising too quickly. He was so popular and had a really big chunk of support here in China.

TONY EASTLEY: What's the level of security like in and around the court?

STEPHEN MCDONELL: There's a lot of police marching around, there's a sort of cordon across the road. So we can't actually go, we can't go into the court. We can't even go into the court sort of compound.

But there's also a relaxed nature about it I have to say as opposed to the other trials. They do seem to be happy to have us there. And there's an extent to which China wants to show the world this is due process and that even though this guy is going to lose - and he will definitely lose - that there is some sort of fairness in the procedure.